1. Field
The embodiments of the system described herein relates generally to providing alternative program material in a media distribution system during a blackout, and more particularly, to a system for programming blackout and retune.
2. Background
It is desirable to deliver multimedia (video and audio content) to large numbers of consumers. It is also desirable that this delivery system be able to deliver a large amount of multimedia content to these subscribers. Because wireless handheld devices are becoming more functional and widely distributed, one approach would be to create a broadcast content delivery system for cellular radio networks, which has the ability to provide users the experience of viewing real-time media. The system has to be an end-to-end system that enables cellular network operators to enhance their multimedia service offerings over their current networks while scaling over time as operators roll out network enhancements. To content providers, the system has to offer the opportunity to leverage their existing content and extend their brands into the wireless space. Thus, the system has to be deliberately designed to provide consumers with a high-quality experience with video and audio on their wireless handsets.
A single frequency network (SFN) as applied to a wireless broadcast network, may be used. The robust design of a wide area service using SFN is partly predicated on the availability of wide area programming, or “services,” that is distributed over large areas in a single format—i.e., all transmissions in the large area are the same. In other words, the identical programming signals, such as CNN and/or ESPN, is provided to multiple services areas. This can allow overlapping signal coverage of adjacent service areas to add constructively in an appropriately designed SFN, where each transmitter radiates the same bit on the same frequency, at the same time to provide a more robust network. This, in turn, requires decrypting keystreams to be identical. Thus, a necessary condition for SFN to function properly is that the “wide area” programming is bit and symbol exact at the physical layer as transmitted from all adjacent service areas.
Currently, wide area cable programmers that offer live event programming are often subject to contracts that define blackout areas for the live event programming. For example, ESPN usually has to blackout games that are associated with the home markets of the teams. In these geographical areas, the rights to the games may have been sold to a regional network, ad hoc network, or a pay per view service. In order to support these contractual obligations, the cable programmer or broadcaster offers alternate programming during the blackout, referred to as retune or replacement programming. The satellite receiver at the cable head end may make replacement programming available. The programmer uses an in-band protocol from the cable programmer's head end to control the retune process in a satellite receiver in the cable programmer's head end. However, the presence of a retune event causes a service to no longer match the “wide area feed.” The retune event changes the character of the retuned service to be more similar to a local feed that, by definition, is different from other local feeds in adjacent local area operation infrastructure (LOI) service areas. These “local services” likely have independent program keys, and key streams. Consequently, the signal for the retuned service will interfere with, and, conversely, be affected by, the signals for the programming in other LOI service areas and decrease the effectiveness of the SFN network.
Accordingly, there is a need to overcome the issues noted above.